EU Data Retention Ruling May Roil US-European Relations

A major European court ruling regarding electronic privacy this week has the potential to shake up trans-Atlantic commerce and maybe impact the privacy debates in the United States over government snooping, analysts say.

On Tuesday, the European Union's highest court struck down a controversial directive that encouraged telecommunication and mobile phone companies to retain users' private data records for up to two years.

The EU's European Court of Justice invalidated the 2006 EU Data Retention Directive on privacy grounds, noting in its opinion that "the directive interferes in a particularly serious manner with the fundamental rights to respect for private life and to the protection of personal data."

The Court seemed particularly concerned by the directive's breadth of data collection.

"The directive covers, in a generalized manner, all individuals, all means of electronic communication and all traffic data without any differentiation, limitation or exception being made in the light of the objective of fighting against serious crime," according to an ECJ press release.

​By invalidating the directive, phone companies and mobile data providers will no longer record user's locations, calls and social contacts without the user's knowledge or consent.

The ruling comes in the wake of a nearly year-long series of revelations about U.S. data collection activities leaked by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, now living in temporary asylum in Russia.

In what some observers consider a nod to the Snowden leaks, the court said the directive could lead to Europeans feeling they have become "the subject of constant surveillance."

"This was the singlemost controversial surveillance Directive ever adopted by the E.U.," said Axel Arnbak, a researcher at the Institute for Information Law at the University of Amsterdam.

"This really was the first time the EU court in Luxemburg was asked about its interpretation of privacy since the adoption of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights in 2009," he said.

While EU member nations could now begin debating electronic surveillance programs specific to their borders, the court's firm rejection of the 2006 directive means that any new programs could also be challenged in court.

"Mandated government surveillance," Arnbak said, "strikes at the heart of democracy."

Impact in the US

The ruling leaves new questions in its wake. Among them, what conflicting EU and U.S. laws on data collections will mean for commerce, and concerns for the future of President Barack Obama's proposed NSA reforms on surveillance and data collection.

"Law is culture," said Bennet Kelley, founder of the Los Angeles-based Internet Law Center. "What you do in law speaks about who you are as a people. The EU has a different viewpoint about privacy...than the U.S.."

Data commerce across the Atlantic, said Kelley, is governed by something called the "European Safe Harbor."

Before any data can leave an EU member nation, U.S. telecommunications firms must certify they follow privacy policies and programs similar to the more stringent EU protections, creating a "safe harbor" for data privacy.

However, Kelley said, regulators on both sides of the Atlantic have long known that many U.S. safe harbor certifications are actually false, creating a serious potential problem for U.S. companies doing business in the EU.

This week's court ruling, he said, will only make commerce more difficult.

"Even before Snowden, there were concerns about the EU Safe Harbor," Kelley said.

"There's already skepticism in Europe because of that, and then you throw in Snowden, it creates more distrust. Having one more element of differentiation between the U.S. and EU is just not helpful."

The ruling also comes just a few weeks after President Obama proposed allowing U.S. telecommunications companies to engage in exactly the sort of data collection the ECJ just rejected.

As part of his overhaul of U.S. electronic surveillance efforts, President Obama wants to remove what's known as the "bulk metadata collection program" from the NSA and make mobile phone and data companies responsible for electronic record-keeping.

"Now it seems like it'd be a hard ask," Kelley said.

Researcher Axel Arnbak agreed.

"Not only its courts, but the EU Parliament and Commission have quite strongly responded to the Snowden revelations and this data retention ruling," Ambak said. "Those in the U.S. that seek to preserve privacy and freedom in the digital age have an extra tool in their kit."

The U.S. Supreme Court this week declined to hear a challenge to the NSA bulk metadata collection program.

Doug Bernard covers cyber-issues for VOA, focusing on Internet privacy, security and censorship circumvention. Previously he edited VOA’s “Digital Frontiers” blog, produced the “Daily Download” webcast and hosted “Talk to America”, for which he won the International Presenter of the Year award from the Association for International Broadcasting. He began his career at Michigan Public Radio, and has contributed to "The New York Times," the "Christian Science Monitor," SPIN and NPR, among others. You can follow him @dfrontiers.

Afghan officials and human rights organizations assert that Pakistani authorities are using deadly attack at school in Peshawar as pretext to push out Afghan refugees More

This forum has been closed.

Comment Sorting

Comments

by: Cy Berg from: Arizona

April 21, 2014 3:23 AM

Kelley steals a quote again "If Law defines who we are as people" I hate to see where privacy, freedom of speech is going or the law with anyone showing any credibility with generic statements from Bennet Kelley. He is known as bending the law, and crossing the red line (no pun intended to his hero Obama)But this guy will do anything to appear as though he is ahead of the game in Internet Law or appear credible.He has no paying career besides a few low life clients that will actually pay him to write harmful articles about others. Kelley is not paid anyting to be quoted, his internet blog radio, or contributing to Huffington.Bennet Kelley should talk about why he no longer is allowed to write for Santa Monica Free Press, no longer is paid counsel for Value Click (especially after their 2008 FTC fine) Even the democratic party distanced themselves from Bennet Kelley after the embarrassing and counterproductive smear campaign against former president Bush and the "BushLies.net"

As far as the Russia-Ukraine Crisis triggering Cyber Wars it s already here and no worse than the garbage that comes out of different news agencies like ILC Cyber Report. Nothing more than the personal mouthpiece for Internet Law Center which is a 1 man show renting a small cubicle in a large office trying to puff up and appear much bigger than he is. He has no career anymore.

by: Earl from: Spain

April 11, 2014 4:09 AM

The U.S. has shown itself to be not worthy of trust.Information collect by U.S. spy services has been passed on the American companies to use against foreign companies.Europe should defend its own citizens and businesses againstspying from the U.S.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has told his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, that his country could face further consequences to what he called its “already strained economy” if Moscow does not fully comply with a cease-fire in Ukraine. The two met, on Monday, on the sidelines of a U.N. Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, where Kerry outlined human rights violations in Russian-annexed Crimea and eastern Ukraine. VOA State Department correspondent Pam Dockins reports from Geneva.

Video

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has told his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, that his country could face further consequences to what he called its “already strained economy” if Moscow does not fully comply with a cease-fire in Ukraine. The two met, on Monday, on the sidelines of a U.N. Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, where Kerry outlined human rights violations in Russian-annexed Crimea and eastern Ukraine. VOA State Department correspondent Pam Dockins reports from Geneva.

Video

Diagnosing infections such as HIV requires expensive clinical tests, making the procedure too costly for many poor patients or those living in remote areas. But a new technology called lab-on-a-chip may make the tests more accessible to many. VOA’s George Putic reports.

Video

Afghan officials have expressed concern over reports of a crackdown on Afghan refugees in Pakistan following the Peshawar school attack in December. Reports of mass arrests and police harassment coupled with fear of an uncertain future are making life difficult for a population that fled its homeland to escape war. VOA’s Ayesha Tanzeem reports from Islamabad.

Video

Despite the ongoing ceasefire in Ukraine, soldiers in the city of Mariupol fear that pro-Russian separatists may be getting ready to attack. The separatists must take or encircle the city if they wish to gain land access to Crimea, which was annexed by Russia early last year. But Ukrainian forces, many of them volunteers, say they are determined to defend it. Patrick Wells reports from Mariupol.

Video

As low oil prices and Western sanctions force Russia's economy into recession, thousands of Moscow restaurants are expected to close their doors. Restaurant owners face rents tied to foreign currency, while rising food prices mean Russians are spending less when they dine out. One entrepreneur in Moscow has started a dinner kit delivery service for those who want to cook at home to save money but not skimp on quality. VOA's Daniel Schearf reports.

Video

The United States and Cuba say they have made progress in the second round of talks on restoring diplomatic relations more than 50 years after breaking off ties. Delegations from both sides met in Washington on Friday to work on opening embassies in Havana and Washington and iron out key obstacles to historic change. VOA’s Mary Alice Salinas reports from the State Department.

Video

One after another, presumptive Republican presidential contenders auditioned for conservative support this week at the Conservative Political Action Conference held outside Washington. The rhetoric was tough as a large field of potential candidates tried to woo conservative support with red-meat attacks on President Barack Obama and Democrats in Congress. VOA Political Columnist Jim Malone takes a look.

Video

New Yorkers take pride in setting world trends — in fashion, the arts and fine dining. The city’s famous biannual Restaurant Week plays a significant role in a booming tourism industry that sustains 359,000 jobs and generates $61 billion in yearly revenue. VOA's Ramon Taylor reports.

Video

Issues like the Keystone XL pipeline, fracking and instability in the Middle East are driving debate in the U.S. about making America energy independent. Recently, the American Energy Innovation Council urged Congress and the White House to make expanded energy research a priority. One beneficiary of increased energy spending would be the Brookhaven National Lab, where clean, renewable, efficient energy is the goal. VOA's Bernard Shusman reports.

Video

There has been a surge of interest in the American civil rights movement of the 1950s and '60s, thanks in part to the Hollywood motion picture "Selma." Five decades later, communities in the South are embracing the dark chapters of their past with hopes of luring tourism dollars. VOA's Chris Simkins reports.

Video

With the end of summer in the Southern hemisphere, the Antarctic research season is over. Scientists from Northern Illinois University are back in their laboratory after a 3-month expedition on the Ross Ice Shelf, the world’s largest floating ice sheet. As VOA’s Rosanne Skirble reports, they hope to find clues to explain the dynamics of the rapidly melting ice and its impact on sea level rise.

Video

A Lao dam project on a section of the Mekong River is drawing opposition from local fishermen, international environmental groups and neighboring countries. VOA's Say Mony visited the region to investigate the concerns. Colin Lovett narrates.